Knotter



E. l..A RAMSEY April E9, W38.

KNOTTER Filed Deo. 4. 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR Edgar ee Hav/15e y pr l, 193%, E. l.. RAMSEY KNOTTER Filed Dec. 4, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Apr. 19, 1938 l UNETE@ STATES narrar KNOTTER Carolina Application December 4, i936, Serial No. 114,191

Claims.

It is well known that knotters must be de? signed, particularly as to details, for the particular characteristics of the thread or strand to 5 be tied. For instance, wool thread requires one type or particular design, ne thread another and the design also Varies with materials of which the thread is composed. For example, rayon threads are difiicult to tie because of the texture of the thread and because it is slippery and cannot be rmly held.

This invention has for one of its objects to provide a knotter so constructed and arranged as to eliminate slack during the tying of the knot,

r' thus tying a tighter knot.

Another object of the invention is to provide a knotter so constructed and arranged that both ends o'f the thread, namely, the ends o-n opposite sides of the knot, will be pulled tight during thev Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a knotter con structed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a similar view of the opposite side Aof the knetter, parts being omitted for the sake of clearness;

Fig. 3 is a front end elevation of the knotter;

Fig. 4 is a longitudinal sectional elevation illustrating the mechanism for performing the various operations;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but showing the parts illustrated in the position taken when the operating lever has been pulled down but has not reached its extreme lower position;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional elevation showing the frame, operating lever and thread positioning means at one side of the frame in the positions taken before the knetter is operated;

Fig. 'l is a view similar to Fig. 6 but showing the parts in the position taken after a partial operation has been performed;

Fig. 8 is a View similar to Fig. 6 showing further parts of the mechanism in their initial or inoperative positions;

50 Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 8 but showing the parts in the position taken on the completion of the operation of the knetter;

Fig. 10 is a top plan view of the knotter; and

Figs. :l1-16, inclusive, are perspective views on an enlarged scale showing the different positions of the parts at the various steps in the operation of' tying the knot. y

The invention briefly described consists of a knetter comprising thread positioning means for crossing the threads at spaced points to form a loop therebetween, a tying bill for forming a knot in the thread, means for cutting the ends of the threads at one side of the knot and means for stripping the knot from the tying bill. The thread engaging and positioning meansv are so constructed and arranged as to provide a minimum amount of slack and are further so arranged relative to the path of movement of the stripper that the stripper in its operation will exert a pull on the threads at both sides of the knot while the end of one of the threads is still being held by the bill.- Thus, both ends of the threads will be pulled tight.

Further details of the invention will appear from the following description.

In the particular embodiment of the invention illustrated, the knetter has a frame comprising a pair of side frames 2t and 2l which are conn nected and are held in spaced relation by screws 22 and 23 and are also connected and braced by means of other spacing members hereinafter described.

The screw 22 has pivoted thereon the main operating lever 25 having a downwardly extending handle 26 and an upwardly extending arcuate plate 2l. Plate 2l' has a tail 28 extending upwardly therefrom at the rear end thereof and also has a downwardly extending notch 29 near the front end thereof. Intermediate the notch 29 and the tail 28 the plate has formed along its upper edge an arcuate or cam surface til.

A spring 3l encircles the screw 22 which forms the pivot for the lever 25. One end of the spring engages a iixed abutment 32 on the side frame 2l and the other end engagesa lug 33 which exn tends laterally from the plate 2i and has formed on the outer end thereof an upwardly extending lug Sil.

The side frames 2li and 2l are provided with alined slots 35 through which extends a transn verse pin il@ on the outer ends of which are mounted resilient strips or links 3l and 38, which act as tension arms. IThe strip 3l is pivoted at its front end at it to a member fill which, as shown at ft2, is pivoted to the frame member 2li.

The front end of the strip or link l'l has a lug i3 formed thereon and the member il has a tooth or lug lil formed thereon.

Y The front end of the frame member 2li has secured thereto a bracket having a U-shaped front end 45. The frame member 28 has formed therein a slot 41, the member 20 being offset, as shown at 48, and the link or strip 31 extending through the slot 41 in this offset portion.

The frame members 28 and 2| have formed on the front end thereof upwardly extending horns or lugs 58 and 5|. Intermediate the horn 58 and the adjacent portion of the frame member 28 there is positioned an upwardly extending finger 52 which is formed on the bracket 45.

A cross pin 55 connects the horns 5|] and 5| and has mounted thereon a U-shaped bracket 56 which has formed thereon a nger 51 which extends upwardly and across the frame of the knotter above the tying bill and is useful in properiy positioning the threads to be tied. The bracket 56 is pivoted on the pin 55 and is held in the position shown in Figs. 8 and 9 by means of a spring 58. Y

The link or strip 38 is provided at its front end with a flange 68, on the upper end of which is formed a hook 6| which engages, positions and guides one of the threads to be tied. The frontV end of the strip or link 38 is pivoted at 62 to a member 63 which in turn is pivoted at 64 to the frame member 2|. The member 63 has an upwardly extending' nger 65 formed thereon and also has an upwardly extending lug 68 at the front end thereof, as shown particularly in Fig. 2.

The strip or link 38 has alsol formed in theV upper edge of the flange a notch 61. During the operation of the knotter one of the threads is v guided under the hook 6| and through the notch 61, as clearly' shown in Figs. 12 and 14.

At the base of the lug 66 on the member 63 there is formed a notch 68 and at the base of the finger there is formed a notch 69, these notches forming pockets for holding and retaining the threads during the movement of the members 38 and 63.

'I'he tying bill is carried by a shaft 15 which is rotatably'mounted in one wall 16 of a U-shaped bracket 11 which is secured between the frame membersrZU and 2| by means of a bolt or screw 18. The bracket has oppositely extending lugs 19 and 80 which seat in slots 8| formed in the side frame members 20 and 2|.

The shaft 15 has connected thereto and extending rearwardly therefrom a spiral screw 82, the rear end of this screw having a pin 83 which seats in an adjustable screw 84 thereon into the wall 85 of the knotter.

The lug 34 which extends upwardly fromthe plate 21 of the leve-r 25 engages one surface of the flat spiral strip or screw 82, as shown particularly in Fig. 10, and as the lever 25 is oscillated to operate the knotter by depressing the handle 26 the engagement of the lug 34 with the surface of the flat spiral strip or screw 82 will cause this strip and the shaft 15 to rotate, thus rotating the bill and tying the knot.

The tying bill comprises a stationary member 86, a movable blade 81 and a cutting bill spring 88. The spring 88 extends rearwardly through a slot in a collar 89 which forms the journal for the shaft 15 and through a collar 96 which is carried by the shaft and abuts against the rear surface of the wall 16. The spring 88 holds the cutting bill blade or shearing jaw 81 in shearing engagement with the stationary blade or tying bill 86.

The blade 81 is pivoted to the stationary bill 86 at and has a fan shaped rear end 96 Which coacts with the edge of an opening 91 in the front wall 58 of the bracket 11 to oscillate the blade 81 during the cycle of operation of the tying bill so as to cut one of the threads after the knot has been tied. The tying bill shaft and parts carried thereby are disposed eccentrically in the opening 81 so that the clamping and shearing jaw or blade 81 will be opened when the` bill is rotated through an angle of and will remain open until one of the threads is disposed therebetween in the position taken after the bill has rotated approximately 270. The thread is shown in Fig. 13 as disposed in the open jaws of the bill. When the bill has completed its rotation of 360 or, in other words, again reaches the vertical upstanding position, the shearing blade and clamping jaw will have been closed, thus severing the thread clamped therein. This thread, however, is clamped in the jaws until the stripper, hereinafter` described, has been moved upwardly to strip the knot from the clamping jawathe stripper during this operation pulling the knot tight in a manner hereinafter described.

The foregoing description explains how one of the threads is cut by the shearing blade of the tying bill. The other thread is cut by means of shears comprising a stationary blade |80 formed on the bracket 45 and a pivoted blade ||l| which is pivoted at |82 to the bracket 45. The pivoted blade |EJ| is operated by a lever |85 which is pivoted intermediate its ends on the pin 18 and. has a fork |56 formed in the rear end thereof. The front end of the lever has formed therein a slot H01 which receives a pin |08 carried by the pivoted shear blade |ll.

The lever |85 is operated by a pin |89 which Ais carried by and projects laterally from the plate 21. This pin, as shown in Fig. 4, is disposed beneath the upper arm of the fork |06 and moves downwardly during the operation of the lever 25 until it engages the lower arm of the fork whereupon the fork is oscillated in an anti-clockwise direction viewing Fig. 4, and raises the pivoted shear blade |0| until this blade coacts with the stationary blade |05 to sever the thread. Fig. 9 illustrates the parts in the position taken after the lever 25 has been depressed to its extreme lower position and the thread has been severed. After both threads have been severed in the manner above described the stripper is operated to strip the knot from the tying bill and to pull the knot tight during the stripping operation.

The stripper consists of a lever having a U- shaped bracket l Il intermediate the ends thereof which is mounted on a pin. extending between the side frame members 2|) and 2|. On one side of the pvot the lever extends rearwardly in the form of a tail ||2 and on the other side'of the pivot the lever extends downwardly around or over the bracket 11 and the front end is curved to form an arc extending around and beneath the tying bill and tying bill shaft or shank. The extreme forward end of the stripper is forked, as shown at I3, to form two upwardly extending tines 4 and ||5. The fork, as shown particularly in Fig. 3, is disposed above the lowermost portion of the bend or arc of the lever. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 10, it will be noted that the stripping fork is disposed substantially in alinement with the hook 5| formed on the front end of the tension arm or link38.

The stripper is operated at the proper point in the cycle of operation of the machine by the tail 28 of the lever 25 which engages a downwardly extending lug or dog ||6 formed on the lever.

Fig. 9 illustrates the engagement between these parts: and shows the lever in its elevated position after the handle 26 has been depressed to its extreme lower position.

Operation In order to tie two threads together the threads are placed in substantially parallel position across the two front ends of the knotter frame, as shown in Fig. 1l. In Figs. 1146, inclusive, one of the threads A is shaded, the other thread B being shown by two lines in the usual manner. This is done in order that the successive positions of the threads may be more clearly illustrated.

From the showing in Fig. l1 it will be noted that the thread A extends over the shank of the tying bill and is disposed in the rear of the lingers 65 and Furthermore, the threadv A is disposed in the notch 59 at the base of the finger 65.

The thread B extends across the knotter in front of the tying bill and is disposed in` front of the fingers 65 and 52. 1

As the handle 26 is depressed rotating the lever 25 in a clockwise direction Viewing Figs. 6-9, inelusive, the tension arms or links 31 and 38 will. be moved forwardly through the slots 41 in the side frame members 20 and 2|. As these members move forwardly the members M and 63 will be oscillated on their pivots and will move rearwardly. This will cause the outer ends of the thread A to move forwardly beneath' the rearwardly moving ends of the thread B, forming a loop between the crossed ends of the thread, as shown in Fig. 12.

The ends of the thread A are engaged and guided in their forward movement by the hook 6l and notch El! on the front end of the tension arm or link 38 and by the lug 43 on the tension arm 31.

The thread B has one end moved rearwardly by the rearward movement of the lug 6G on the member 63, the thread being disposed in the pocket 63 at the base of the lug 66. The other end of the thread B is moved rearwardly by its engagement with the lug All carried by the member 4I. After the two ends of the threads have been crossed in the manner shown in Fig. l2 the tying bill rotates to the position shown in Fig. l1 from which it will be seen that the bill is about tomove downwardly between the tension arm 38 and the crossed ends of the threads. The bill continues to rotate, the two ends of the threads being held frictionally during this rotation between the tension arms 3l and 33 and the pivoted members 4i and 53. When the bill reaches the position shown in Fig. 13 one end of the thread B will be received between the clamping and shearing jaw or blade 3'! and the stationary blade 85 and spring $3. At this time the corresponding end of the thread A will be cut by the upward shearing movement of the shearing blade lill The tying bill continues to rotate until it has rotated through approximately 360 and is again in upright position. When the bill has reached this position the knot has been tied, but has not been tightened. At this stage in the operation the tail 28 of the lever 25 engages the downwardly extending dog or lug liti on the stripper and elevates the stripper. As the stripper is elevated the end of the thread B between the tying bill and the tension arm or member 38 will be engaged by the fork M3 of the stripper and will be disposed between the tines iid and IIE` of the fork. Furthermore, the end of the thread A between the hook 6| and the tying bill will extend over the front arcuate portion of the stripper adjacent the fork, as sh'own in Fig. l5.

During this time the end ofthe thread B is still being held between the clamping and shearing jaw 3l' and the stationary jaw 35 and spring 83. Thus, as the stripper is elevated the knot will be pulled tight by a pulling action on the two endsof the threads being tied. In this way a tight knot is made. Upon the release of the handle 26 the parts are returned to their initial positions by means of the spring 3i.

Particular attention is directed to the fact that the fork on the end of the stripper is disposed substantially in alinement with the hook 6i on the front end of the member 33 and that during its upward movement the fork rst engages the thread B between the tines of the fork and next engages the thread A which extends over the front arcuate portion of the stripper adjacent the fork. In this way the knot is pulled tight by pulling on both of the threads as the knot is stripped from the tying bill.

Although one specific embodiment of the invention has been particularly shown and described, it will be understood that the invention is capable of modification and that changes in the construction and in the arrangement of the various cooperating parts may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention7 as expressed in the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a knotter of the character described, a tying bill, means for engaging, guiding and positioning the threads for knotting prior to the operation of the bill, means for operating the bill to tie the knot, and a stripper having an upwardly projecting prong spaced from the free end thereof around which the thread ends adjacent the knot pass as the stripper is elevated for pulling the knot tight and stripping the knot from the tying bill.

2. In a knotter of the character described, a tying bill, means for engaging, guiding and postioning the threads for knotting prior to the operation of the bill, means for operating the bill to tie the knot, and a stripper having a forked end movable upwardly to engage the two ends of the threads adjacent the knot, with one thread end positioned on each side of the inner prong of the fork, thereby pulling the knot tight and stripping the knot from the tying bill.

3. In a knotter of the character described, a tying bill for tying a knot in a pair of threads, a stripper having a pair of prongs at the end thereof, an outer prong and an inner prong forming a fork, and means for so guiding and positioning the threads during the operation of the knotter that the stripper during its stripping operation will position one thread over the stripper between the prongs of the fork and the other thread over the stripper on the other side of the inner prong.

4. In a knotter of the character described, a tying bill for tying a knot, said bill having a cutting and clamping jaw adapted to out one thread and to hold the cut end until after the knot is stripped from the bill, a stripper for stripping the knot from the bill, and holding and positioning means for positioning the thread ends being tied, said stripper having an upwardly extending projection arranged to engagey both end portions of thethread leading to the knot on the tying bill and to pull said ends tight over spaced portions of the upper surface of the stripper as the knot is stripped from the bill and while one thread end is held by the bill.

5. In a knotter oi the character described, a tying bill, means for guiding and positioning threads for knotting prior to the operation of the tying bill, said means comprising a pair of elements disposed at each side of the knotter, one element of each pair operating to feed one thread end forwardly and the other element of each pair 10 operating to feed the other corresponding thread 

